In my previous blog post, I wrote about SitecoreAI Pathway when it was announced at Sitecore Symposium 2025. I mentioned that I would explore the tool once it was available. Since then, I have been hands-on with Pathway and recently presented my findings at the Sitecore User Group Coimbatore (SUGCBE) in April 2026. This post is an updated comparison between the XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool (which I have been writing about throughout 2025) and the new SitecoreAI Pathway, now informed by my actual experience using the tool.
If you have been following my migration tool series (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3), you know how the old tool works. This post explains what Pathway does differently and why Sitecore is moving in this direction.
Quick Recap: XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool
The XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool was a technical utility that helped move content, media, and users from Sitecore XP/XM to XM Cloud. It was a "Lift & Shift" approach - it moved your data as-is from source to target.
It had two modes: GUI and CLI. You would point it to your source CM instance, select the content, media, or users to migrate, and it would transfer them to the target XM Cloud environment. Simple and effective for what it was designed to do.
However, it had clear limitations:
- It only moved data, not the website structure
- It preserved the existing monolithic content models without modernizing them
- No support for component-first restructuring
- No content modeling cleanup
- Sitecore-to-Sitecore only - no support for other CMS platforms
- Required direct access to the source CM instance
The tool is now limited to as-is migration only — primarily used for migrating media library assets from source to target. Pathway is the new recommended approach for content migration.
What is SitecoreAI Pathway?
SitecoreAI Pathway is an AI-powered content migration tool available as a marketplace app through the Sitecore Cloud Portal. Unlike the old migration tool, Pathway does not just move data from point A to point B. It uses AI to analyze your existing site structure, intelligently map your legacy templates and renderings to modern SitecoreAI components, and transform your content model during migration.
Think of it this way: the old tool was a moving truck that transported your furniture as-is. Pathway is more like an interior designer who reorganizes and modernizes your furniture to fit a new, better-designed house.
Two Migration Paths
One of the biggest things I discovered during my exploration is that Pathway supports two distinct migration paths:
1. Sitecore Website — For existing Sitecore XM/XP customers. You use the XMComponentExtraction tool to extract source page data as JSON files and upload them to Azure Blob Storage. Pathway then groups pages by source template. This path requires .NET 9.0, PowerShell 7+, and CM access.
2. Any Website — This is the one that surprised me. Pathway has a built-in web crawler that can scrape any public website. Just provide a URL or sitemap XML link, and Pathway handles the rest — no Azure Blob setup, no extraction tools. I tested this with my own blog (nehemiahj.com) and it crawled 50 pages, grouped them by page design and HTML structure, and migrated them successfully.
Both paths share a common requirement: your target SitecoreAI site structure must already be in place — templates, components, page designs. Pathway maps content to existing structures; it does not create new ones.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Aspect | XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool | SitecoreAI Pathway |
|---|---|---|
| Approach | Lift & Shift | AI-powered intelligent mapping & transformation |
| Source Systems | Sitecore XP/XM only | Sitecore XP/XM and any public website (via built-in web crawler) |
| What it Migrates | Content, Media, Users | Page content & structure with AI-mapped components (Media still needs the old tool) |
| Content Model | Preserves existing structure as-is | Modernizes content model to headless-friendly components |
| AI Involvement | None | AI groups pages, maps components, provides reasoning for mapping decisions |
| Human Review | Select what to migrate, then it runs | Human-in-the-loop: review and validate AI mappings before execution |
| Prerequisites on Target | XM Cloud environment ready | Target site structure, templates, components, and page designs must be created first |
| Multi-language | Supported | Single language per migration run (beta limitation) |
| Interface | Desktop app (GUI) or CLI | Web-based (Sitecore Cloud Portal) + downloadable extraction packages |
| Speed | Depends on content volume | Sitecore claims up to 70% reduction in migration time through AI automation |
| Accuracy | 1:1 copy (100% of what it copies) | AI-mapped content needs manual review — post-migration refinement is expected |
| Cost | Free (part of XM Cloud) | Iincluded (free) with Sitecore 360 / SitecoreAI subscription |
How SitecoreAI Pathway Works (High Level)
The migration process in Pathway follows these key stages:
- Install & Create Migration - Install Pathway from the Sitecore Cloud Portal Marketplace. Create a new migration and select your source type — "Sitecore website" or "Any website."
- Configure Target - Select your target SitecoreAI environment and site. Upload your target site structure (
xmc-structure.json) generated using theCMSExportStructurePowerShell script. - Extract Source Data - For Sitecore websites: deploy the
XMComponentExtractionhandler and console app to extract page data as JSON to Azure Blob Storage. For any website: click "Start Web Crawling" and Pathway's crawler discovers and extracts pages automatically via the sitemap. - Content Audit — AI Page Grouping - Pathway's AI analyzes the extracted pages and groups similar pages together. For Sitecore sites, grouping is based on source templates. For any website, it analyzes page design and HTML structure.
- Template Mapping - The AI matches each group to the most appropriate target template. You can view the reasoning behind each mapping decision — why it chose a particular template based on page structure and content.
- Component Mapping - The AI maps source components to target SitecoreAI components. Review and adjust manually if needed.
- Execute Migration - Run the migration with a real-time dashboard showing succeeded vs failed pages. Retry failed pages as needed.
What Pathway Does NOT Migrate
It is important to know the boundaries. Pathway does NOT handle:
- Media library assets - You still need the XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool for this
- Templates and component code - Must be recreated in SitecoreAI by developers
- Personalization rules
- Workflow states
- Analytics data
- Custom modules and integrations
- Datasources with child items
This means the old migration tool is not obsolete. You will likely use both tools together: the old tool for media migration and Pathway for intelligent content migration.
Beta Limitations to Keep in Mind
Since Pathway is still in beta, there are some constraints I encountered during my testing:
- 50 URL limit — Each migration run supports a maximum of 50 URLs. For larger sites, you will need multiple runs.
- Single language per run — Pathway currently supports one language per migration. Multilingual sites will need separate runs for each language.
- No JavaScript-rendered content — The web crawler works with static HTML only. Pages that rely heavily on client-side JavaScript rendering will not be fully captured.
- No gated or authenticated pages — The crawler cannot access pages behind login walls or IP restrictions (unless you whitelist the crawler's IP).
- No AI customization yet — You can see the AI's reasoning for its mapping decisions, which is great for transparency. But there is no way to guide or customize the AI instructions yet. If your team knows the source system well, you cannot tell the AI "these are product pages, not blog posts" — that capability is not available today.
- No re-run capability — If something goes wrong mid-migration, you may need to start from the beginning rather than resuming where you left off.
My Hands-On Experience
I tested Pathway using both migration paths. For the "Any Website" path, I used my blog nehemiahj.com. The crawler picked up 50 pages from the sitemap, the AI grouped them and named each group based on the blog post content (like "XM Migration CLI Guide," "Commerce Cache Troubleshooting"), and mapped them all to the "Page" target template. Migration result: 50 succeeded, 0 failed. The migrated pages appeared in the Content Editor organized by year and month, with URL-friendly names preserved.
The AI grouping is where Pathway really shines. Instead of mapping every page individually, the AI identifies common patterns and groups similar pages together. This dramatically reduces repetitive mapping effort, especially for sites with hundreds of pages sharing similar structures.
The prerequisite setup for the Sitecore website path is more involved — you need to deploy the XMComponentExtraction handler, configure SecurityPolicy changes, set up Azure Blob Storage, and prepare the target structure JSON. It works, but plan time for getting all the pieces in place.
Key Takeaway
The XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool and SitecoreAI Pathway serve different purposes. The old tool is a reliable data mover, now primarily used for media migration. Pathway is a content modernizer that uses AI to transform your legacy content model into a headless-friendly architecture.
For organizations migrating to SitecoreAI, the recommended approach is:
- Design your target site structure in SitecoreAI (templates, components, page designs)
- Migrate media assets using the XM to XM Cloud Migration Tool
- Migrate and transform content using SitecoreAI Pathway
- Review and refine migrated content — AI mapping is powerful but post-migration cleanup is expected
In my upcoming posts, I will share detailed walkthroughs of both migration paths with screenshots — the Sitecore website extraction process and the web crawling approach. Stay tuned.
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